Law.Enforcement – AFSCME Privatization Updatehttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate
Information on the latest activities, problems, and issues in the contracting out of public servicesWed, 16 Aug 2017 23:19:10 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.7.5124494553Update public on airport securityhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2017/06/policing-of-hawaii-airport-triggers-lawsuit.htm
Thu, 29 Jun 2017 15:33:24 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=38825Source: Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 23 June 2017 Last summer the state awarded Securitas a three-year, $130 million contract for security at all Hawaii airports. …The Hawaii Government Employees Association, meanwhile, is questioning whether private security guards are qualified or legally authorized to have police powers. The union contends that, over the years, the DOT has allowed Securitas to […]

Last summer the state awarded Securitas a three-year, $130 million contract for security at all Hawaii airports. …The Hawaii Government Employees Association, meanwhile, is questioning whether private security guards are qualified or legally authorized to have police powers. The union contends that, over the years, the DOT has allowed Securitas to expand its role. …

The state Transportation Department did confirm that it had given the Public Safety Department a 180-day notice of its intent to terminate an agreement to station 57 deputy sheriffs at the airport. But Fuchigami said he wants to work out a new agreement that gives deputy sheriffs new duties and better coordinates security operations at the airport. … Despite reassurances that the sheriff’s department will remain part of the airport’s security detail the sheriff’s union believes this shake up is an attempt to drive it’s deputies out. “That is our biggest concern that this is just another step toward privatizing law enforcement at the airport and that is something we violently object to,” said Randy Perreira, HGEA Executive Director.

Major changes are in the works at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport with regards to security. The Hawaii Department of Transportation sent a letter to the Department of Public Safety to say deputy sheriffs will no longer be patrolling the airport. The Department of Public Safety tells us it has 57 deputy sheriffs and two civilians working at Honolulu’s airport. … Deputy sheriffs belong to the Hawaii Government Employees Association. The union filed a lawsuit against the state last year because it allowed Securitas to take over some of the law enforcement duties at all of Hawaii’s airports. We asked about this latest issue, and received the following statement from Randy Perreira, HGEA executive director: “HGEA is aware of the letter from the State Department of Transportation to the Department of Public Safety regarding termination of services of State Sheriffs at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport. We are working to get more information regarding this issue.

]]>38825JSU Police canceling Calhoun County 911 dispatch service managementhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2017/05/jsu-police-canceling-calhoun-county-911-dispatch-service-management.htm
Wed, 17 May 2017 22:39:48 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=41393Source: Patrick McCreless, The Anniston Star, May 5, 2017 Jacksonville State University police are set to return to in-house dispatch services in July, less than a year after outsourcing those duties in the expectation of improved efficiency. JSU officials now say contracting out the emergency and non-emergency medical calls hasn’t made the dispatch service more […]

Jacksonville State University police are set to return to in-house dispatch services in July, less than a year after outsourcing those duties in the expectation of improved efficiency. JSU officials now say contracting out the emergency and non-emergency medical calls hasn’t made the dispatch service more efficient. The JSU police will instead use a combination of professional dispatchers and student workers to handle all emergency and non-emergency calls moving forward. JSU police Chief Shawn Giddy sent a letter to Calhoun County 911 Monday stating his department no longer wanted the organization to manage its dispatch services. …

]]>41393Nevada National Guard security will be privatizedhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2017/03/nevada-national-guard-security-will-be-privatized.htm
Thu, 16 Mar 2017 19:11:06 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=40900Source: Sean Whaley, Las Vegas Review-Journal, March 8, 2017 A panel of lawmakers on Wednesday approved funding of nearly $400,000 to provide contracted security for the state’s National Guard facilities, although some committee members expressed concern about the move to privatization. The Nevada Office of the Military learned in October 2016 that it was improperly […]

A panel of lawmakers on Wednesday approved funding of nearly $400,000 to provide contracted security for the state’s National Guard facilities, although some committee members expressed concern about the move to privatization. The Nevada Office of the Military learned in October 2016 that it was improperly allowing its Army Military Security Officers to use privately owned firearms on duty, contrary to an Army security agreement. As a result, the office was forced to disarm its security officers, which it said is an unacceptable security risk for the guard bases. The $392,000 contract approved by the Legislature’s Interim Finance Committee will transfer funds from a different military account to allow the guard bases to use private armed security. While some lawmakers expressed concern with the move, the office said the use of contractors for such services is common for the military. …

]]>40900Walking the line on police privatization: efficiency, accountability, and court decisionshttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2016/09/walking-the-line-on-police-privatization-efficiency-accountability-and-court-decisions.htm
Wed, 14 Sep 2016 16:23:04 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=39424Source: Pace William Rawlins & Sung-Wook Kwon, International Review of Administration Sciences, September 2016 Abstract: This research reviews key issues in the privatization of local police services by discussing economic and political pressures for police privatization and concerns regarding the quality and accountability of privatized police. In particular, the authors explore whether the cost-efficiency sought […]

This research reviews key issues in the privatization of local police services by discussing economic and political pressures for police privatization and concerns regarding the quality and accountability of privatized police. In particular, the authors explore whether the cost-efficiency sought from police privatization outweighs a critical side effect of a growing confusion regarding police oversight and significant uncertainties in accountability. They analyze court decisions in the US dealing with the question of whether constitutional protections extend to private police conduct. Relevant court decisions suggest that the confusion may grow even worse and local policy makers may need to pay more attention if they decide to privatize police services.

Points for practitioners While police privatization occurs at all levels of government, this research focuses narrowly on the municipal level because there are significantly more local police agencies than at any other level of government. This study first clarifies the motives behind police privatization and then brings to light the side effects that may occur, especially accountability issues. This will act as a guide for local policy makers because accountability and cost-efficiency are major concerns when considering police privatization. Local officials can more comprehensively consider the demand for privatization of local police services and potential legal issues caused by the privatization effort.

]]>39424The Mysterious Private Police Force That’s Killing People In The Nation’s Capitalhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2016/09/the-mysterious-private-police-force-thats-killing-people-in-the-nations-capital.htm
Thu, 01 Sep 2016 18:09:38 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=39292Source: Carimah Townes, ThinkProgress, August 31, 2016 Beyond DC, a handful of cities and states contract with security companies to employ special police officers who face far less scrutiny than traditional law enforcement, even though they operate almost identically. These companies establish their own standards and procedures, disciplinary measures, and managerial discretion. … Today, D.C. […]

Beyond DC, a handful of cities and states contract with security companies to employ special police officers who face far less scrutiny than traditional law enforcement, even though they operate almost identically. These companies establish their own standards and procedures, disciplinary measures, and managerial discretion. … Today, D.C. has 120 private companies that employ 16,580 law enforcement agents: 7,720 special officers along with 8,860 guards, stationed at apartment buildings, colleges, commercial buildings, and hospitals, compared to approximately 3,700 MPD officers in the city. Some are stationed in D.C. government buildings, including the Wilson Building, where the mayor and city council member’s offices are located. And 4,523 of those special officers are armed. … A General Order released by the MPD in 1993 says special officers function much like MPD officers in that they have the power to make arrests and carry firearms — privileges that private security guards aren’t afforded. Special officers are also allowed to use force on the properties they’re employed to oversee. … Beyond the high-profile cases, however, information about special officers’ use of force throughout the city is extremely limited. What little information is available paints a picture of an unaccountable body of agents that frequently uses abusive tactics.

IN SEPTEMBER, a 57-year-old man allegedly wielding a knife was fatally shot by a private security guard in Union Station. In October, a 74-year-old patient at MedStar Washington Hospital Center died two days after a clash with private security guards. And last month, a 27-year-old man died after he was restrained by security guards at a Southeast apartment building. It will be up to police and prosecutors to determine if there was criminal culpability in any of the cases, but the fact of these three deaths in three months demands that D.C. officials take a serious look at how they regulate the private police forces that help patrol the city. … So the inevitable question is whether the training required and received by private security officers is sufficient. According to city officials, there are nearly 17,000 private security officers (special police and general security) affiliated with 122 security companies who staff housing projects, hospitals and other properties in the District. Some carry weapons and can make arrests after undergoing certification by the police department. Training is conducted by a third-party vendor …

]]>39292Morro Bay drops police outsourcing after public outcryhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2016/08/morro-bay-drops-police-outsourcing-after-public-outcry.htm
Thu, 11 Aug 2016 15:12:30 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=38978Source: Lindsey Holden, The Tribune, August 10, 2016 Morro Bay residents on Tuesday night showed strong support for their local police force, speaking out against a plan floated by the city to outsource law enforcement services to the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office as a way to save $500,000 a year. City Council members, […]

Morro Bay residents on Tuesday night showed strong support for their local police force, speaking out against a plan floated by the city to outsource law enforcement services to the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office as a way to save $500,000 a year. City Council members, who were to consider whether to further research contracting out the city’s policing, heard from dozens of constituents who packed Veterans Memorial Hall to praise Morro Bay’s department and the level of service officers provide. … The idea first came about in 2015, when Management Partners, a consulting firm Morro Bay officials hired to provide feedback on how the city could function more efficiently, proposed outsourcing law enforcement to save money. Morro Bay was to take up the issue in 2017, but the Aug. 1 departure of police Chief Amy Christey, and the need to find her replacement, prompted city officials to consider the topic now. … A 10-year budget forecast by Management Partners prompted the city to look into cost-saving measures last year, Buckingham said. Although Morro Bay’s finances are in the black and basic services can be met, he said, the city has about $3 million in unfunded needs, including an annual $1 million shortfall for street repairs and $2 million per year for facility replacements and expanded services. … Prior to the council’s vote, angry residents booed Buckingham when he brought up potential cost-savings during his report. Residents who took to the podium said their quality of life in Morro Bay depends on maintaining local services, such as police, fire and harbor patrol. Ken Vesterfelt presented council members with a petition, signed by 2,200 people, urging the city to keep its police department. …

A decision to consolidate emergency dispatch centers into what’s called Public Safety Answering Points was approved Tuesday by a statewide 911 administrator. Administrator Cindy Barbera-Brelle emailed Rock Island County Emergency Telephone System Board chairman Steve Seiver that the county’s proposal has been accepted. … Agencies were required to submit a consolidation plan by the end of June and now have until June 30, 2017, to finish developing specific operational guidelines. Rock Island County was tasked with cutting its centers to three. Emergency telephone system board members decided to keep Rock Island and Rock Island County’s centers open, but close a Centre Station center handling Moline and East Moline calls, as well as Milan and Silvis. Moline, East Moline, and Milan decided to create a new dispatch center to be housed in Milan. Silvis has started negotiations with Rock Island’s department. …

A plan to consolidate local police dispatch centers was filed a day before its state-mandated deadline. The plan for what is officially known as Public Safety Answering Points — PSAPs– was needed by June 30. It was filed June 29, Rock Island County Emergency Telephone System Board chairman Steve Seiver said. … On June 29, 2015, Gov. Bruce Rauner signed a bill into law that required reducing the six Rock Island County emergency dispatching centers to three by June 30, 2017. … Milan, Moline and East Moline will consolidate and be housed at Milan. Where Silvis will go will be determined later by the newly consolidated PSAPs, according to information in the “Application for 9-1-1 Consolidation or Modified Plan.” Silvis city administrator Jim Grafton said city leaders were disappointed they didn’t get to see a copy of the proposed application before a city council meeting could have been convened. An emailed copy of it arrived in Silvis June 28. Revisions were suggested, but a council meeting couldn’t be called in time to approve it. … Dispatch centers employ about 54 full-time employees represented by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, as well as part-time employees and supervisors, according to reports. Staffing and budgetary requirements will be addressed this year ahead of an implementation stage. Ignoring or postponing a PSAP consolidation decision would have jeopardized future 9-1-1 surcharge funding, according to materials.

]]>38889GHC outsourcing security, custodial serviceshttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2016/05/ghc-outsourcing-security-custodial-services.htm
Thu, 12 May 2016 14:43:40 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=37870Source: Northwest Georgia News, May 11, 2016 Georgia Highlands College will be outsourcing campus safety and custodial positions at all campuses, according to school officials. “We want to broaden our security and are privatizing and restructuring the custodial program to help with the costs of that expansion,” explained Sheila Jones, director of public relations and […]

Georgia Highlands College will be outsourcing campus safety and custodial positions at all campuses, according to school officials. “We want to broaden our security and are privatizing and restructuring the custodial program to help with the costs of that expansion,” explained Sheila Jones, director of public relations and marketing. … The college’s human resources department is arranging employee meetings with Dynamic Security, the company that will be supplying security services. Employee meetings will also be set up with 3H Systems, the custodial services company. … The college currently has 29 full-time employees working in custodial and security departments at all of its campuses. Also, security and custodial staff will be encouraged to apply for any open GHC positions for which they may be qualified, and human resources will contact Kennesaw State, Dalton State and the Technical College System of Georgia to obtain information on any position opportunities they have.

]]>37870Walbridge seeks public input before outsourcing policehttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2016/05/walbridge-seeks-public-input-before-outsourcing-police.htm
Fri, 06 May 2016 16:11:11 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=37778Source: Debbie Rogers, Sentinel Tribune, May 5, 2016 Before the potential closure of the police department, council and the mayor want to hear from the community. … A couple of community members gave their opinions on outsourcing the police department to save money, which was proposed last month. … Kolanko said the majority of residents […]

Before the potential closure of the police department, council and the mayor want to hear from the community. … A couple of community members gave their opinions on outsourcing the police department to save money, which was proposed last month. … Kolanko said the majority of residents want to keep a police force in Walbridge. But finances may dictate outsourcing. “It’s not fun to talk about, but if you want to be a good manager of finances, it’s a conversation you have to have,” he said. “If we can keep it here – and that’s the feedback from the community … that will be a priority.” However, if the quotes come back high, the village may look at what can be done to restructure the department to try to save money. The 2016 annual police budget is $405,000, Kolanko said. Letters asking for proposals were sent on April 25 to Lake Township, Northwood and the Wood County Sheriff’s Office. The village is asking for a minimum of one police officer present in the village at all times, attendance at one council meeting a month, continuation of the block watch program, a multi-year agreement for service, and 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week coverage. …

]]>37778Stockbridge to draft contract with private police firmhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2016/04/stockbridge-to-draft-contract-with-private-police-firm.htm
Thu, 21 Apr 2016 19:12:42 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=37536Source: Asia Ashley, Henry Herald, April 12, 2016 Stockbridge city officials have given the OK to the city manager to proceed with drafting a contract with a private police services company. During Monday’s City Council meeting, City Manager Michael Harris said the city’s public safety committee interviewed six to seven private security firms to provide […]

Stockbridge city officials have given the OK to the city manager to proceed with drafting a contract with a private police services company. During Monday’s City Council meeting, City Manager Michael Harris said the city’s public safety committee interviewed six to seven private security firms to provide protection within the city limits. Advanced Protective Services was recommended as the firm to pursue. Candidates to provide the services were narrowed down based on “experience and approach,” according to Harris. … The decision to privatize police services came after the city decided not to renew the service delivery strategy for the services with Henry County. The city had paid the county $500,000 annually for two Henry County Police Department officers to be in the city limits all hours of the day. The county has maintained that the city has been underpaying for the service, particularly due to the high call volume in Stockbridge. Late last year county officials proposed an agreement that would require Stockbridge to pay the county $743,000, a figure still below the actual cost to provide the additional county services within the city, according to Police Chief Keith Nichols. The payment would have increased 4 percent per year beginning Jan. 1, 2017. … Harris said the officers will likely be armed and be allowed to detain suspects, but will not have arrest powers. The company will mostly be doing code enforcement, typically working evenings and weekends. They will be responsible for having their own liability and insurance coverage, and the city will not be liable for any incidents, said Harris. Preliminary discussions with the council indicate that there will likely be two private officers per shift, which may increase or decrease during certain times of year, Harris said. He said costs will “certainly” be less than the cost of paying the county.

]]>37536US contractor fined $3.1 mn for outsourcing work to Indiahttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2016/03/us-contractor-fined-3-1-mn-for-outsourcing-work-to-india.htm
Mon, 28 Mar 2016 14:13:34 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=37253Source: Domain-B, March 26, 2016 US authorities have imposed a hefty $3.1 million fine on a US contractor for illegally outsourcing a $3.4 million US government-funded work to a sub-contractor based in India. Charles Tobin, owner of Focused Technologies Imaging Services and its former co-owner Julie Benware have been slapped with the penalty and fees […]

US authorities have imposed a hefty $3.1 million fine on a US contractor for illegally outsourcing a $3.4 million US government-funded work to a sub-contractor based in India. Charles Tobin, owner of Focused Technologies Imaging Services and its former co-owner Julie Benware have been slapped with the penalty and fees for outsourcing the work to a subcontractor based in Mumbai in 2008 and 2009. … Focused Technologies had, in 2008-09, been awarded a $3.45 million contract by the New York State Industries for the Disabled (NYSID) and the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS), to digitise and index approximately 22 million fingerprint cards into a searchable database. … Focused got the work done by paying the Indian sub-contractor just over $82,000 for this indexing between October 2008 and September 2009. Neither the Indian company, nor any of its employees were aware that the sub-contract was illegal, the US authorities stressed. The outsourcing was illegal because Focused sent personal information of over 16 million people to the Mumbai-based subcontractor that was unauthorised to receive this information. The outsourcing also resulted in the failure of Focused to adhere to a requirement that over 50 per cent of the labour hours of the contract be performed by individuals with disabilities

]]>37253Outsourced Law Enforcementhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2015/12/outsourced-law-enforcement.htm
Tue, 08 Dec 2015 20:56:43 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=36348Source: Kiel Robert Brennan-Marquez, New York University School of Law Public Law Research Paper No. 15-51, November 2015 From the abstract: How should the Constitution think about “outsourced law enforcement” — that is, investigative activity carried out by private actors that substitutes, in practice, for the labor of law enforcement? Existing doctrine offers a simple […]

From the abstract:
How should the Constitution think about “outsourced law enforcement” — that is, investigative activity carried out by private actors that substitutes, in practice, for the labor of law enforcement? Existing doctrine offers a simple answer to this question, centered on chronology. If the government was responsible for outsourcing law enforcement — if a private actor was operating as an “agent or instrument” of the state — Fourth Amendment scrutiny applies, just as it would apply to the conduct of state officials. If, on the other hand, the outsourcing transpired voluntarily — if a private actor decided, without prodding, to assist the authorities — no Fourth Amendment scrutiny applies. This rule is often called the “private search” rule. I adopt that label here.

My goal, in this brief Essay, is to suggest that the private search rule suffers a crucial blind spot — indeed, one that goes to the heart of Fourth Amendment privacy. When it comes to private searches, what we should care about is not which party, private actor or state official, initiated the relationship. What we should care about is whether the private actor, in monitoring others, engaged in privacy-eroding conduct that is functionally similar to — and merits the same regulation as — the privacy-eroding conduct of law enforcement officials. In other words, the relevant question is: Did the labor of a private actor supplant the need for law enforcement involvement at a particular stage of the investigative process? Or, put even more simply: Did a private actor step into the shoes of law enforcement? If so, then Fourth Amendment scrutiny — at least in some measure — is warranted.

]]>36348Newark OKs dispatcher agreement with countyhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2015/09/newark-oks-dispatcher-agreement-with-county.htm
Tue, 22 Sep 2015 15:34:23 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=35389Source: Kent Mallett, Newark Advocate, September 21, 2015 The city’s police dispatching will move from the police station to the Licking County 911 Center sometime next year, as a result of City Council’s 7-3 vote Monday night in favor of a two-year agreement among the city, county government and the county’s Emergency Management Agency. … The agreement […]

The city’s police dispatching will move from the police station to the Licking County 911 Center sometime next year, as a result of City Council’s 7-3 vote Monday night in favor of a two-year agreement among the city, county government and the county’s Emergency Management Agency. … The agreement states the city will pay the county $515,000 annually to perform its police and fire dispatching duties. City fire dispatching is already performed at the new 911 Center, which opened in April 2014 and uses computer-aided dispatch. The city’s eight police dispatchers, who are members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 2963, could apply for the county jobs or attempt to remain city employees by bumping other city employees from their positions. … Lewyenne Shumaker, president of AFSCME Local 2963, said she does not expect any of the city dispatchers to apply for the county jobs because they would lose seniority as well as the city’s contribution to Public Employees Retirement System, and insurance benefits would not be as good. She said the union should have been involved in the negotiations.

Since discussions began about moving the Newark Division of Police’s dispatching services to the Licking County 911 Call Center, safety director Bill Spurgeon hasn’t spoken much about the issue. But after the council approved a resolution Monday night, allowing the city to negotiate a possible plan, Spurgeon shared his thoughts with The Advocate on Tuesday. … The proposal was first presented to the council’s Public Service Committee in late March. The committee recommended that the council authorize negotiations and then vote again before the city enters any final contracts with the county. …

]]>35389Private colleges, public safety: few disclosure requirements for campus policehttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2015/09/private-colleges-public-safety-few-disclosure-requirements-for-campus-police.htm
Thu, 17 Sep 2015 16:21:18 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=35280Source: Shawn Musgrave, Muckrock, September 15, 2015 …Campus cops are empowered as “special state police officers,” a category which also includes police employed by hospitals and railroads. As of June 2015, there were 1,500 special state police officers across Massachusetts, the vast majority of whom work at colleges and universities. .. Sworn campus police may […]

…Campus cops are empowered as “special state police officers,” a category which also includes police employed by hospitals and railroads. As of June 2015, there were 1,500 special state police officers across Massachusetts, the vast majority of whom work at colleges and universities. .. Sworn campus police may carry weapons, make arrests and use force, just like any other officer. Statute grants special state police “the same power to make arrests as regular police officers” for crimes committed on property owned or used by their institutions. … Hundreds of campus police are thus full officers of the law. Yet special state police are exempt from the Massachusetts public records law, which requires government agencies to release most documents upon request, including police reports. … In June, after the shooting of a knife-wielding suspect by Massachusetts state police near its campus, Boston University police rejected a request for reports filed by its own responding officers. Incident reports are typically public records when completed by municipal or state police. A BUPD lieutenant responded that his department would release the report only under subpoena. … Massachusetts case law supports this interpretation. In a suit brought by Harvard’s student newspaper, the state’s Supreme Judicial Court ruled in January 2006 that the public records statute does not cover private university police.

]]>35280Chicago sues red light camera firm for $300 millionhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2015/09/chicago-sues-red-light-camera-firm-for-300-million.htm
Wed, 02 Sep 2015 19:03:59 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=34765Source: David Kidwell, Chicago Tribune, August 31, 2015 Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s administration has sued Chicago’s former red light camera operator, Redflex Traffic Systems, for more than $300 million on grounds the entire program was built on a $2 million bribery scheme at City Hall that has already led to federal corruption convictions. According to court […]

Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s administration has sued Chicago’s former red light camera operator, Redflex Traffic Systems, for more than $300 million on grounds the entire program was built on a $2 million bribery scheme at City Hall that has already led to federal corruption convictions. According to court filings unsealed late last week, the Emanuel administration has joined forces with a former executive vice president at Redflex who says he helped orchestrate the scheme under orders from his bosses. The city moved earlier in August to intervene as a plaintiff in a whistleblower case filed under seal by the fired executive, Aaron Rosenberg, in Cook County Circuit Court more than a year ago. … The lawsuit alleges that the competitive bidding process was corrupted by Bills’ actions to steer the contract to Redflex, and that his actions defrauded Chicago taxpayers by orchestrating a better deal for the vendor at taxpayer expense. … Also, the lawsuit alleges, Bills orchestrated renewing the Redflex contract without going out to bid and was constantly looking for ways to expand Redflex fees because he got extra commissions for all work that went to Redflex outside the scope of its contract.

The former chief executive officer of Redflex, a major red light camera (RLC) vendor, has been indicted on federal corruption charges stemming from a contract with the City of Chicago. On Wednesday, in addition to former CEO Karen Finley, government prosecutors also indicted John Bills, former managing deputy commissioner at the Department of Transportation, and Bills’ friend Martin O’Malley, who was hired as a contractor by Redflex. According to the indictment, O’Malley himself was paid $2 million for his services as a contractor, effectively making him one of the company’s highest paid workers. Much of that money was then funneled to Bills, who used it for personal gain. Via Redflex employees, Bills also acquired a Mercedes and a condominium in Arizona. In December 2013, Ars reported on red light cameras nationwide, and in particular, Redflex’s four cameras in the central California town of Modesto. A May 2014 affidavit written by an FBI special agent suggests that Bills likely used some of this money to purchase and store a boat, buy a car, pay for an addition to his Michigan cabin, pay for his girlfriend’s mortgage, pay his own mortgage, pay his kids’ schools, and hire a divorce attorney over the course of several years. A 2013 Redflex document states that two employees “paid for vacation-related expenses” for Bills “for at least 17 different trips from 2003 through 2010,” which included “hotels, flights, rental cars, golf games and meals” and a computer, for a total value of around $20,000. Karen Finley was vice president of operations at Redflex from 2001 until late 2005, and then was promoted to CEO from 2006 until February 2013….

The Tribune investigation found about thirteen thousand questionable tickets at about a dozen intersections and similar pattern of problems at several others. The Tribune found some cameras went from writing one or two tickets a day to more than 50 in some cases with no real explanation as to why.
The Tribune also found inconsistencies with tickets for drivers ticketed for not coming to a complete stop before turning right. Three experts reviewed the documents the Tribune gathered and said there were two possibilities for the dramatic jumps. Either people messed with the cameras to ticket more drivers or the cameras malfunctioned. In either case, the experts say the city should have noticed the wide swings in the tickets and investigated what was going on. The city transportation department told the Tribune it wasn’t aware of the problems until the paper showed them their data.

Chicago’s embattled red light camera firm went to City Hall on Friday in its latest effort to come clean, acknowledging for the first time that its entire program here was likely built on a $2 million bribery scheme. By its sheer size, the alleged plot would rank among the largest in the annals of Chicago corruption. An internal probe of Redflex Traffic Systems Inc. and a parallel investigation by the city’s inspector general — prompted by reports in the Chicago Tribune — have cost the company its largest North American contract and all of its top executives. On Friday the company announced the resignations of its president, its chief financial officer and its top lawyer. The head of Redflex’s Australian parent company conducted town hall meetings at the headquarters of its Phoenix-based subsidiary to tell employees there was wrongdoing in the Chicago contract and that sweeping reforms were being instituted to win back the company’s reputation….

]]>34765Meet The Man Who Runs New Orleans’ Entirely Privatized (And Controversial) City Surveillance Systemhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2015/08/who-runs-the-streets-of-new-orleans-how-a-rich-entrepreneur-persuaded-the-city-to-let-him-create-his-own-high-tech-police-force.htm
Thu, 27 Aug 2015 17:05:09 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=34326Source: Eric Markowitz, International Business Times, August 26, 2015 …The result is Project NOLA, perhaps the country’s first and most extensive private surveillance network, run, improbably, by one man and a ragtag group of volunteers. … This is how it works: New Orleans residents who have chosen to participate install a surveillance camera on their home or […]

…The result is Project NOLA, perhaps the country’s first and most extensive private surveillance network, run, improbably, by one man and a ragtag group of volunteers. … This is how it works: New Orleans residents who have chosen to participate install a surveillance camera on their home or business. The cameras must face toward the street and broadcast a high-resolution feed. The videos feed directly to Project NOLA’s headquarters. Lagarde says that those who host a camera are also given the username and password, and can access the videos whenever they’d like. … This is where relations with the police department have gotten somewhat uncomfortable. Gamble, the police spokesman, says that while the police appreciate all the help they can get, Lagarde has overstepped on a number of occasions. … Gamble adds, “He’ll watch his video cameras and he’ll listen to feeds of the police scanners. And then he’ll call the command desk and get someone to try to give him information.” Gamble says Lagarde has even tried to re-route officers to a particular scene, and called schools to urge them to go into lockdown after something he saw on a video feed….

…. In the United States, private police officers currently outnumber their publicly funded counterparts by a ratio of roughly three to one. Whereas in past decades the distinction was often clear — the rent-a-cop vs. the real cop — today the boundary between the two has become ‘‘messy and complex,’’ according to a study last year by Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. Torres’s task force is best understood in this context, one where the larger merging of private and public security has resulted in an extensive retooling of the nation’s policing as a whole. As municipal budgets have stagnated or plummeted, state and local governments have taken to outsourcing police work to the private sector, resulting in changes that have gone largely unnoticed by the public they’re tasked with protecting.

]]>34326Graves of Shamehttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2015/07/graves-of-shame.htm
Thu, 16 Jul 2015 21:14:58 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=34058Source: John Carlos Frey, Texas Observer, July 6, 2015 A year ago, a Texas Rangers inquiry found “no evidence” of wrongdoing in the botched handling of migrant remains in Brooks County. New evidence indicates rampant violations of the law. According to the Brooks County Sheriff’s Office, from 2009 through 2013, the years when the mass […]

A year ago, a Texas Rangers inquiry found “no evidence” of wrongdoing in the botched handling of migrant remains in Brooks County. New evidence indicates rampant violations of the law.

According to the Brooks County Sheriff’s Office, from 2009 through 2013, the years when the mass graves were most active, 361 migrant remains were recovered in Brooks County. Each of those remains would have passed through multiple hands. When remains are discovered, a deputy sheriff is called to investigate the scene, along with a county justice of the peace who makes a determination of death. Funeraria del Angel Howard-Williams, the funeral home in nearby Hebbronville owned by Service Corporation International, the nation’s largest death services provider, then arrives to recover the remains, which are transferred to Elizondo Mortuary in Mission for processing. However, Texas law does not require processing and identification of human remains be performed by a licensed medial examiner.

Elizondo is supposed to try to identify each set of remains, a process that by law includes gathering fingerprints, photographing any clothing or possessions, and “proper removal of a sample from a body” for lab tests. When Ramirez or a justice of the peace requests an autopsy, it is conducted by a third party—starting in 2007, that third party was a local pathologist, Dr. Fulgencio Salinas. After some weeks, Elizondo returns any unidentified remains to Howard-Williams for burial in Sacred Heart. At every stage, a paper trail accumulates. According to Texas law, death records must be retained for at least 10 years.

The sheriff’s office turned over all 361 crime scene reports. But the Brooks County clerk’s office could locate files related to the retrieval and burial of no more than 121 of these remains, leaving records on two-thirds of the dead unaccounted for. According to notes from a series of meetings that took place from December 2012 to June 2013 between the forensic anthropologists and county officials, and confirmed by Chief Deputy Martinez, the county sheriff’s office never received from Salinas a single autopsy report during this period, despite repeated requests. By law, such reports must be made available to law enforcement. …..

….It’s unclear how Salinas, a family doctor with a private practice in Edinburg, was charged with taking over the autopsies. His medical license indicates that he is not board-certified in pathology. Before 2007, the Nueces County coroner in Corpus Christi, a state-accredited medical examiner, had been contracted to handle identification and autopsies of unidentified remains found in Brooks County. But in 2007, just after Raul Ramirez was elected county judge, that work was steered to Elizondo Mortuary, a small family business, which took on the task of identifying remains and contracted out the autopsies to Salinas. The Brooks County clerk easily located the contract with Nueces County, which is still active, but could not locate one with Elizondo. In response to follow-up queries, a county auditor wrote, “There are no service contracts between Brooks County and Funeraria del Angel Howard-Williams Funeral Home or between Brooks County and Elizondo Mortuary.”….

…..While Elizondo appears to have broken the law in failing to collect DNA samples pre-burial, Howard-Williams was responsible for the chaotic burials themselves. And though Elizondo, a family operation, could plausibly claim ignorance of the law, Howard-Williams is owned by the Houston-based national chain Service Corporation International (SCI). In exonerating Howard-Williams of any violations, Lain relied heavily on an assessment by the Texas Funeral Services Commission (TFSC).

TFSC oversees all mortuaries and funeral service companies in Texas. Though the commission’s executive director, Janice McCoy, has no prior experience in funeral services, she is deeply connected to the Texas political establishment. Prior to her TFSC appointment, she served for several years as chief of staff for GOP state Sen. Troy Fraser. Several TFSC commissioners also lack funeral business experience, and some have GOP ties, including Sue Evenwell, a member of the State Republican Executive Committee.

SCI’s CEO, Robert Waltrip, considers former Gov. Rick Perry a personal friend, and ranked as one of Perry’s top political donors during Perry’s tenure as governor, personally donating a total of $310,000 from 2001 to 2010, according to Texans for Public Justice. SCI also has a close tie to the Texas Rangers—its director of security, Robert K. Madeira, is a former Ranger lieutenant……

….SCI has been mired in controversy for decades. In 2001, The Miami Herald reported that SCI had exhumed bodies to make room for fresh burials in an overcrowded cemetery in Palm Beach. The case resulted in a $14 million settlement with Florida’s attorney general. In 2009, The Washington Post reported that another SCI funeral home, in Falls Church, Virginia, failed to properly store the bodies of veterans. The decomposing bodies were described as “disgusting, degrading and humiliating.” (SCI defended the practice, saying Virginia has no law that requires bodies to be refrigerated.)

According to a 2013 story in Bloomberg Businessweek, SCI has a history of buying rural funeral homes and raising prices, charging, on average, 42 percent more for funerals than rivals…..

Texas says there is “no evidence” of wrongdoing after mass graves filled with bodies of immigrants were found miles inland from the U.S.-Mexico border. The bodies were gathered from the desert surrounding a checkpoint in Falfurrias, Texas, in Brooks County. An investigation was launched after the mass graves were exposed last November in a documentary by The Weather Channel in partnership with Telemundo and The Investigative Fund. The report also found many of the migrants died after crossing into the United States and waiting hours for Border Patrol to respond to their 911 calls. We speak with reporter John Carlos Frey, who found rampant violations of the law….

About two weeks ago in Falfurrias, a small town in the northeastern part of the county, a team of archaeologists uncovered a mass grave where many immigrants’ remains had been buried — in trash bags, shopping bags, body bags or no bags at all, researchers told the Corpus Christi Caller-Times, which broke the story last week. ….Baker estimated the bodies were buried between 2005 and 2009 — with no known names, no known families. For most, their only identification was a small, temporary grave marker bearing the name of a local funeral home. The bodies are believed to have been buried there by Funeraria del Angel Howard-Williams, a local funeral home contracted by the county to handle the bodies for $450 per corpse after sheriff’s officials recovered them from the brush country, according to reports. County Judge Raul Ramirez told the Caller-Times that this has been the practice for 16 years…..

A series of mass graves filled with remains of unidentified migrants has been discovered in a South Texas cemetery. … Brooks County Sheriff’s Chief Deputy Benny Martinez said he would meet with the county judge and commissioners Tuesday in Austin to investigate what happened with the burials. …. Martinez said he doesn’t foresee any criminal charges for the funeral home, Funeraria del Angel Howard-Williams, that the county pays to take care of bodies after sheriff’s officials recover them. “We have always been under budget constraints,” he said. “Maybe there was no money to facilitate burying the bodies.” …. A spokeswoman for Service Corporation International, which owns the funeral home, said in an emailed statement: “No matter if this is one of our client families we serve on a traditional basis or a migrant family’s loved one we are serving and we do not have identification of the loved one, it is our policy to treat the decedent with care, to treat them just like we would treat anyone else.”…. When the researchers discussed the matter with the funeral home before the excavation, Baker said, they were told that Sacred Heart didn’t have maps or lists to help figure out where the bodies were buried or who they belonged to. When they asked for the materials the funeral home used for the burials, they were shown fiberboard coffins, Baker said. “But we are yet to find any burials using those,” she said….

….County officials said they paid the local funeral home, Funeraria del Angel Howard-Williams to handle the bodies after sheriff’s officials recovered them from the brush country. County Judge Raul Ramirez said that was the practice for at least 16 years. A smaller number of migrants die in neighboring Jim Hogg County. It has paid Howard-Williams to handle bodies for as long as Chief Sheriff’s Deputy Lorenzo Benavides can remember — at least 22 years, he said. The funeral home buried the Jim Hogg County remains in the Brooks County cemetery, he said. The funeral home currently charges $450 to handle each body, Brooks County Chief Deputy Benny Martinez said. Researchers found remains under small, temporary grave markers bearing the Howard-Williams name, Baker said. A kitchen garbage bag containing bones was tucked inside a gift bag emblazoned with a logo featuring the word “Dignity,” Baker said, indicating one of the funeral service brands owned by Howard-Williams’ parent company, Houston-based Service Corporation International. The company acquired Howard-Williams in 1999, spokeswoman Jessica McDunn said….

]]>34058Montana to outsource autopsies in Julyhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2015/07/montana-to-outsource-autopsies-in-july.htm
Fri, 10 Jul 2015 15:51:19 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=33932Source: Spokesman Review, June 29, 2015 Montana autopsies will have to be done in other states in the coming weeks because the state’s only two forensic medical examiners qualified to assist county coroners are leaving. …. The bodies of those who die under suspicious circumstances in the western part of the state will be driven […]

Montana autopsies will have to be done in other states in the coming weeks because the state’s only two forensic medical examiners qualified to assist county coroners are leaving. …. The bodies of those who die under suspicious circumstances in the western part of the state will be driven by a coroner to Seattle. Bodies in the eastern part of the state will be transported to Rapid City, South Dakota, for autopsy.

]]>33932ISP communication consolidation affects 3 in East Molinehttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2015/07/isp-communication-consolidation-affects-3-in-east-moline.htm
Thu, 09 Jul 2015 21:42:25 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=33919Source: Stephen Elliott, Quad-Cities Online, July 8, 2015 The Illinois State Police plan to consolidate District 7 radio communication services in East Moline into the District 1 communications center in Sterling starting Sept. 1. State police said the East Moline consolidation is the first of three planned in this phase. District 16 in Pecatonica and […]

The Illinois State Police plan to consolidate District 7 radio communication services in East Moline into the District 1 communications center in Sterling starting Sept. 1. State police said the East Moline consolidation is the first of three planned in this phase. District 16 in Pecatonica and District 17 in LaSalle also will become part of the Sterling communications center. … According to a state police news release, the agency began consolidation communication centers in 2012, working to merge 20 centers into six in Sterling, Chicago, Springfield, Pontiac, Collinsville and DuQuoin…..

]]>33919State board backs Woodbury County sheriff’s deputies in courthouse security disputehttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2015/06/woodbury-county-sheriff-pitches-plan-to-take-over-courthouse-security.htm
Wed, 10 Jun 2015 17:44:30 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=32996Source: Kirby Kaufman, Sioux City Journal, June 10, 2015 A state board has found in favor of the union representing Woodbury County sheriff’s deputies who challenged the county supervisors’ decision last year to outsource security for the county courthouse. The victory for members of the Communications Workers of America Local 7177, Monday’s ruling by the […]

A state board has found in favor of the union representing Woodbury County sheriff’s deputies who challenged the county supervisors’ decision last year to outsource security for the county courthouse. The victory for members of the Communications Workers of America Local 7177, Monday’s ruling by the Iowa Public Employment Relations Board will not have any practical effect, however. Since the union filed a grievance against the county last year, a new majority of supervisors, reversing the earlier decision, voted to turn over the courthouse security to Sheriff Dave Drew. …. The action pitted Local 7177 against the new security workers, who were represented by American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 3462. The county supported AFSCME in the Public Employment Relations Board case, which advanced to an arbitration hearing.
Related:EXCLUSIVE: Woodbury County will switch courthouse security staffing on May 1
Source: Bret Hayworth, Sioux City Journal, April 15, 2015

Bringing an expected end to a yearlong struggle, the Woodbury County Sheriff’s Office will take over courthouse security and replace the current supervisor on May 1. Sheriff’s Deputy Don Armstrong will be transferred from patrol duty and take over for current security chief Marty Pottebaum. …
Related:
Woodbury County Sheriff pitches plan to take over courthouse security
Source: Bret Hayworth, siouxcityjournal.com, January 28, 2015

Security guards working at the Woodbury County Courthouse could be reapplying for their jobs less than a year after they started. ….. The outsourcing, aimed at saving an estimated $70,000 a year in personnel costs, resulted in sheriff’s deputies filing a grievance through their union. The action before the Public Employee Relations Board in November pitted deputies in the Communications Workers of America Local 7177 against the new security workers, who are represented by American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 3462. The county supported AFSCME in the action. The relations board’s decision is due by March 22…..

]]>32996State police to bring back emergency dispatchers to Montville, other barrackshttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2015/05/dispatchers-say-money-saving-efforts-are-jeopardizing-public-safety.htm
Tue, 19 May 2015 15:57:10 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=29680Source: Greg Smith, The Day, May 18, 2015 State police have abandoned the controversial consolidation of emergency dispatchers into regional call centers and plan to divert 911 calls back to local barracks by the end of the year. Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection Commissioner Dora B. Schriro made the announcement on Monday, following […]

State police have abandoned the controversial consolidation of emergency dispatchers into regional call centers and plan to divert 911 calls back to local barracks by the end of the year. Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection Commissioner Dora B. Schriro made the announcement on Monday, following a yearlong review of a move that sent many 911 calls from eastern Connecticut to a consolidated dispatch center in Tolland. …. Osten had proposed legislation ending the consolidation, which was widely criticized shortly after it was initiated and led to what some had called a disconnect by dispatchers unfamiliar with the areas they were covering. ….
Related:Dispatchers say money-saving efforts are jeopardizing public safety
Source: Jason Frazer, Joseph Wenzel IV, WFSB, December 11, 2013

A move to consolidate 911 dispatch centers for the Connecticut State Police is supposed to save money. However, some first responders told Eyewitness News it’s putting your safety in jeopardy when you dial 911. Dispatchers said they are overtired and overworked. In some cases, they have been forced to work 17 to 18 hours per day for six days in a row. They added they’re drinking a lot of coffee to stay awake….

… Last year, the state police started merging troops. It started in the western part of the state when two troops merged into Troop L in Litchfield. Soon thereafter, troops based in Hartford and Bradley International Airport combined. In October, three state police troops in the eastern part of Connecticut, including one in Danielson, are all merging into Troop C in Tolland. That’s where the union said there have been problems. …

]]>29680Back To The Drawing Board On Consolidated Dispatchhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2015/04/back-to-the-drawing-board-on-consolidated-dispatch.htm
Mon, 27 Apr 2015 17:52:21 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=33460Source: Carrie L. Gentile, CapeNews.net, April 24, 2015 With Town Meeting resoundingly objecting to housing a consolidated emergency dispatch hub in the Gus Canty Community Center, selectmen will now have to decide how to proceed. …. During last week’s Annual Town Meeting, voters rejected an appropriation made by selectmen to convert part of the community […]

With Town Meeting resoundingly objecting to housing a consolidated emergency dispatch hub in the Gus Canty Community Center, selectmen will now have to decide how to proceed. …. During last week’s Annual Town Meeting, voters rejected an appropriation made by selectmen to convert part of the community center on East Main Street into a dispatch hub and instead approved a smaller amount of $75,000 to place it on the third floor of the Falmouth Fire Rescue headquarters on Main Street. Advocates state the fire station is better equipped and better suited for such a purpose, while the community center remodeling would cost more and take away municipal recreation space. While the final decision lies with the board, the Town Meeting vote sent a strong message to selectmen and the town manager to reconsider their choice. ….

]]>33460Private prison vendors could face new scrutinyhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2015/04/evers-looking-to-make-substantial-reforms-to-prison-system.htm
Mon, 20 Apr 2015 16:12:22 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=33059Source: Mary Ellen Klas, Miami Herald, April 19, 2015 Looming in the background in the legislative debate over prison reform is a question that could come into new focus: How productive was the move to privatize prisons and inmate health care and how much farther should it go? Florida legislative leaders last week tentatively agreed to the […]

Looming in the background in the legislative debate over prison reform is a question that could come into new focus: How productive was the move to privatize prisons and inmate health care and how much farther should it go? Florida legislative leaders last week tentatively agreed to the creation of a joint legislative oversight board with the power to investigate and monitor the performance of Florida’s troubled Department of Corrections. It’s goal is to secure the safety of inmates in the face of mounting reports of suspicious inmate deaths, excessive use of force and allegations of cover-ups at the agency that houses more than 101,000 prisoners, said sponsors of the measure, Sen. Greg Evers, R-Baker, and Rep. Carlos Trujillo, R-Miami. But the legislative panel could also open the door to an evaluation of the recent shift in priorities that has led the state to open seven private prisons, contract out services for 21 inmate work camps, and shift mental healthcare and substance abuse treatment and inmate health care to private vendors….
Related:Evers looking to make substantial reforms to prison system
Source: Tome McLaughlin, Daily News, February 7, 2015

As he embarks on his final term in the state Senate, Greg Evers is confronted with the greatest challenge of his long legislative career. The state’s prison system is in turmoil, as recent scrutiny has revealed deficiencies and evidence of negligence or even corruption that has led to inmate deaths. …. He said the number of corrections’ officers working in state prisons has dropped by about 3,000 since 2009 and somewhere between 2,300 and 4,000 positions need to be filled or created. …. The governor has also proposed spending to replace DOC vehicles, replace its food service contract, additional electronic monitoring, adjustments to health services contracts and substance abuse and mental health programs and treatments.

]]>33337Escaped prisoner apprehended in D.C. after hours-long manhunthttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2015/04/escaped-prisoner-arrested-in-d-c.htm
Wed, 01 Apr 2015 16:14:06 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=33280Source: Justin Jouvenal, Dana Hedgpeth and Matt Zapotosky, Washington Post, March 31, 2015 …When a guard took a bathroom break, Wossen Assaye, a federal prisoner, somehow slipped his shackles and overpowered a second guard, taking her gun and using her as a human shield, authorities said. Assaye was being treated because of a suicide attempt, […]

…When a guard took a bathroom break, Wossen Assaye, a federal prisoner, somehow slipped his shackles and overpowered a second guard, taking her gun and using her as a human shield, authorities said. Assaye was being treated because of a suicide attempt, they said. ….Robert W. “Bobby” Mathieson, U.S. marshal for the Eastern District of Virginia, said it has been agency policy to have private security firms, not the Marshals Service, guard prisoners being treated at hospitals. Federal records show that in January 2014, Allied Protection Services was awarded a contract with the Marshals Service to provide armed guards for work in the Eastern District of Virginia. The contract is reviewed annually but would be worth a total of $306,000 over five years…..
Related:Escaped prisoner arrested in D.C.
Source: Dana Hedgpeth and Justin Jouvenal, Washington Post, March 31, 2015

An escaped prisoner who overpowered a private security guard at Inova Fairfax Hospital in Falls Church and later carjacked two people was arrested in D.C. shortly before noon, police said…. The escaped prisoner, who took the security guard’s gun, is known by police as the “Bicycle Bandit” and is believed to be involved in several bank robberies in the area, escaping on a bicycle… Police said a private security company was hired to guard him at the hospital. According to the police account, a struggle ensued between the guard and Assaye inside a hospital room. Assaye overpowered the guard and took a gun. Police said one shot was fired but no one was injured. Fairfax County Police Chief Ed Roessler did not specify who fired the shot. Assaye “gained control of the gun,” Roessler said. He said two guards were watching Assaye at the time of the incident, but only one guard was involved in the struggle….Under an agreement with the U.S. Marshals Service, federal prisoners are held at the Alexandria detention center, according to Amy Bertsch, a spokeswoman for the Alexandria Sheriff’s Office. Bertsch said Alexandria sheriff’s deputies remained with Assaye until Saturday afternoon and then turned custody over to security officers hired under a contract with the U.S. Marshals office. Assaye escaped from the hospital under the watch of two private security officers. Desmond Proctor, a spokesman for the U.S. Marshals, declined to comment Tuesday on the incident or discuss the agency’s policy for maintaining the custody of prisoners in medical settings. He said they expected to release a statement later today…..

]]>33280Shared services a way to cut human cost, but is it better?http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2015/03/shared-services-a-way-to-cut-human-cost-but-is-it-better.htm
Mon, 23 Mar 2015 16:59:32 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=33235Source: Cindy Nevitt, pressofAtlanticCity.com, March 20, 2015 Shared services have become a popular way for municipalities to trim the high cost of services, as is contracting out services. Hopewell Township, Cumberland County, for example, shares municipal court, senior center and volunteer fire services, and, noted acting Township Clerk Susan Quinones, “the majority of our employees […]

Shared services have become a popular way for municipalities to trim the high cost of services, as is contracting out services. Hopewell Township, Cumberland County, for example, shares municipal court, senior center and volunteer fire services, and, noted acting Township Clerk Susan Quinones, “the majority of our employees wear multiple hats to limit the number of individual employees required to perform the duties as required by the State of New Jersey.” In addition to her role as township clerk, Quinones herself is also the township administrator and economic development director. In Upper Township, Cape May County, the municipal engineer is also the computer director, municipal housing liaison and flood plain manager. Avalon, Cape May County, shares its financial director and police dispatch services with neighboring Stone Harbor, and aggressively contracts out such functions as management of its water utility and its landscaping work. Still, while salaries and wages for 98 employees represented a relatively low 24 percent of the borough’s budget last year, that percentage bumped up to 39.5 percent when $2.44 million in health care costs were added….

…James Moran, the administrator in Stafford Township, does not think there is anything unclear about which method works better. “Frequently, it is not in our best interest to privatize services,” he said. ‘Generally, you save money in the beginning but you spend more in the long run because often, after the first contract, they raise the price and then you’re stuck.”…

]]>33235Opinion: Designing Private Cities, Open to Allhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2015/03/opinion-designing-private-cities-open-to-all.htm
Wed, 18 Mar 2015 18:16:07 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=33219Source: Alex Tabarrok and Shruti Rajagopalan, New York Times, March 16, 2015 ….As the world urbanizes, we need to experiment with new urban forms and new forms of urban planning, and privately designed and operated cities — proprietary cities — like Jamshedpur, India, or Reston, Va., may provide answers….. Private cities are also thriving in […]

….As the world urbanizes, we need to experiment with new urban forms and new forms of urban planning, and privately designed and operated cities — proprietary cities — like Jamshedpur, India, or Reston, Va., may provide answers….. Private cities are also thriving in the United States. Companies created proprietary communities in Reston, Va., and Irvine, Calif., in the 1960s, which were recently ranked by CNN Money magazine as the 10th and 14th best places to live in America, respectively, because of their efficient city services and pleasing integration of business, commercial and residential uses.
Throughout the United States, new housing is governed privately. Millions of Americans live in homeowner associations that often provide security, garbage collection and transportation. Some large cities supplement public police with private security. San Francisco, for example, has had a private police force protecting some downtown areas for almost 170 years…..

]]>33219Private police carry guns and make arrests, and their ranks are swellinghttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2015/03/private-police-carry-guns-and-make-arrests-and-their-ranks-are-swelling.htm
Mon, 02 Mar 2015 21:53:00 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=33163Source: Justin Jouvenal, Washington Post, March 1, 2015 …Like more and more Virginians, Youlen gained his police powers using a little-known provision of state law that allows private citizens to petition the courts for the authority to carry a gun, display a badge and make arrests. ….. The growth is mirrored nationally in the ranks […]

…Like more and more Virginians, Youlen gained his police powers using a little-known provision of state law that allows private citizens to petition the courts for the authority to carry a gun, display a badge and make arrests. ….. The growth is mirrored nationally in the ranks of private police, who increasingly patrol corporate campuses, neighborhoods and museums as the demand for private security has increased and police services have been cut in some places. The trend has raised concerns in Virginia and elsewhere, because these armed officers often receive a small fraction of the training and oversight of their municipal counterparts.

]]>33163Puerto Rico Dumps Traffic Cameras, Orders Refunds/ After just a few months, Puerto Rico cancels automated ticketing machine contract, refunding all citations.http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2015/01/puerto-rico-dumps-traffic-cameras-orders-refunds-after-just-a-few-months-puerto-rico-cancels-automated-ticketing-machine-contract-refunding-all-citations.htm
Fri, 16 Jan 2015 20:50:24 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=32909Source: theNewspaper.com, January 16, 2015 The public in Puerto Rico complained so loudly about the photo enforcement program that the territory’s government listened. Red light cameras went up at three intersections in October dealing out $250 tickets for making rolling right turns, speeding or having a recently expired vehicle registration. On Thursday, Governor Alejandro Garcia […]

The public in Puerto Rico complained so loudly about the photo enforcement program that the territory’s government listened. Red light cameras went up at three intersections in October dealing out $250 tickets for making rolling right turns, speeding or having a recently expired vehicle registration. On Thursday, Governor Alejandro Garcia Padilla (D) had his transportation department refund every ticket issued. … Haste was important, since the program had not become fully operational. A contract clause allowed the transportation department to cancel the deal without paying the $6 million termination fee at any time before the installation was complete. Transportation officials also insist that the photo ticketing firm failed to deliver on its end of the bargain. A no-bid contract was awarded to International Traffic Systems, which also operated in Puerto Rico under the name “National Public Safety Consortium.” In the United States, this entity goes by the name InsureNet, a company run by Jonathan Miller of Georgia. InsureNet sells automated license plate readers and has unsuccessfully lobbied to have automated cameras issue tickets to drivers whose insurance or registration has lapsed in states like Oklahoma and Illinois….

During a meeting with the union on Sept. 4, top officials of the New York Police Dept. discussed their plans to phase out computer consultants and boost in-house information technology and clerical-administrative staff. The labor-management meeting dealt with workplace clerical staffing issues.
“We are encouraged by the tone of the new management team at the NYPD,” said Robert Ajaye, president of Data Processing Personnel Local 2627, “but we are still waiting to find out about any new hiring.”
The meeting occurred a month after Comptroller Scott M. Stringer released a stinging report about the NYPD’s poor oversight of contractors responsible for upgrading its troubled emergency communications system. The cost of the project ballooned from $1.3 billion to $2.3 billion and the new system was delayed for years and marred by malfunctions when it finally went online in May 2013. During the meeting, Jessica S. Tisch, NYPD’s new deputy commissioner of information technology, discussed restructuring the department’s IT operations. Deputy Commissioner of Labor Relations John Bierne also attended the meeting. Part of the plan, Tisch said, would be to drop consultants and assign more of the work in-house, which would require increasing the civil service staff. The department wants to “take control of the contractors” and “tell them what to do” rather than acceding control over operations to them, she said….

]]>32772“This Is the Part of Detroit That Most People Are Not Aware Of” – How private security guards divide Detroit into two separate and unequal cities.http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2014/11/this-is-the-part-of-detroit-that-most-people-are-not-aware-of-how-private-security-guards-divide-detroit-into-two-separate-and-unequal-cities.htm
Wed, 19 Nov 2014 17:15:07 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=32652Source: Laura Gottesdiener, Mother Jones, November 17, 2014 ….On the brink of a new, post-bankruptcy beginning, Detroit is really two cities. One is comprised of wealthy enclaves like Palmer Woods linked to a compact, rapidly redeveloping downtown. The other is made up of the rest of the 139-square-mile urban expanse, populated by longtime residents who […]

….On the brink of a new, post-bankruptcy beginning, Detroit is really two cities. One is comprised of wealthy enclaves like Palmer Woods linked to a compact, rapidly redeveloping downtown. The other is made up of the rest of the 139-square-mile urban expanse, populated by longtime residents who have fought for decades to survive in an environment that has become increasingly uninhabitable.

In the first Detroit, private security is common and the living is relatively safe. In the second, running water has systematically been cut off from at least 27,000 households this year alone, the latest in a series of government-enacted policies that have made daily life an increasingly desperate battle. Rather than growing closer in the coming post-bankruptcy era, many residents fear that these two Detroits—already so separate and unequal—will have increasingly divergent futures…..

…To Cheryl LaBash, however, this new private security set-up isn’t just a byproduct of downtown gentrification; it’s yet another threat to Detroit’s crippled democratic process and the ability of its residents to express political dissent. Last February, private security guards stopped LaBash and a handful of other demonstrators from pamphleting and gathering petition signatures inside Campus Martius, which she believes is an encroachment of her First Amendment rights. The legality of the move may soon be contested, since Campus Martius is one of a number of Detroit parks that, while privately administered, is still officially publicly owned. As for why it seemed like the security guards were expecting the group of pamphleteers, one officer explained to LaBash, “a little birdie told us,” an apparent reference to the monitoring of activist Twitter accounts….

]]>32652Stop and seize / Aggressive police take hundreds of millions of dollars from motorists not charged with crimeshttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2014/09/stop-and-seize-aggressive-police-take-hundreds-of-millions-of-dollars-from-motorists-not-charged-with-crimes.htm
Tue, 09 Sep 2014 17:05:26 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=32341Source: Michael Sallah, Robert O’Harrow Jr., Steven Rich, Washington Post, September 6, 2014 … Behind the rise in seizures is a little-known cottage industry of private police-training firms that teach the techniques of “highway interdiction” to departments across the country. One of those firms created a private intelligence network known as Black Asphalt Electronic Networking […]

… Behind the rise in seizures is a little-known cottage industry of private police-training firms that teach the techniques of “highway interdiction” to departments across the country. One of those firms created a private intelligence network known as Black Asphalt Electronic Networking & Notification System that enabled police nationwide to share detailed reports about American motorists — criminals and the innocent alike — including their Social Security numbers, addresses and identifying tattoos, as well as hunches about which drivers to stop. … “All of our home towns are sitting on a tax-liberating gold mine,” Deputy Ron Hain of Kane County, Ill., wrote in a self-published book under a pseudonym. Hain is a marketing specialist for Desert Snow, a leading interdiction training firm based in Guthrie, Okla., whose founders also created Black Asphalt. Hain’s book calls for “turning our police forces into present-day Robin Hoods.” … After Sept. 11, 2001, civil forfeiture and the war on drugs became entwined with efforts to improve homeland security. Smugglers of all kinds turned away from airports because of the tightened security and took to the nation’s interstate highway system. With federal encouragement, police from small towns, rural counties and big cities sought specialized training. Among those that met the demand was Desert Snow, a family-owned company founded in 1989 by Joe David, a California highway patrolman. Other firms also stepped up, including the 4:20 Group, Caltraps, Hits, Diamondback Training, and Global Counter-Smuggling Training Consultants. Soon more than a dozen companies were competing for millions in state and federal grants and contracts, along with fees from local departments across the country. The training had an immediate effect in some areas. After the Kansas Highway Patrol arranged sessions through Desert Snow for state and local police in 2005 and 2006, the amount of cash flowing into police budgets from seizures nearly doubled, from an average of $2.6 million a year between 2000 and 2006 to $4.9 million a year after 2007…..

]]>32341Red light camera industry fights citizen votehttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2014/09/red-light-camera-industry-fights-citizen-vote.htm
Thu, 04 Sep 2014 17:26:09 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=32317Source: Noah Pransky, WTSP, September 4, 2014 …Florida’s leading red light camera-provider American Traffic Solutions confirms to 10 Investigates Wednesday that it has joined the fight to prevent a citizen-backed referendum on red light cameras from ever reaching a ballot. The city is also fighting the referendum on grounds that it infringes upon city council’s […]

…Florida’s leading red light camera-provider American Traffic Solutions confirms to 10 Investigates Wednesday that it has joined the fight to prevent a citizen-backed referendum on red light cameras from ever reaching a ballot. The city is also fighting the referendum on grounds that it infringes upon city council’s power. However, the enemy of the city’s enemy is not its friend in this case; the city is objecting to the intervention from the industry-backed group. As previously reported by 10 Investigates, Tampa law firm Carlton Fields Jorden Burt incorporated a group last week called “Keep Florida Roads Safe,” and immediately filed lawsuits to prevent voters from having a say on red light cameras (RLC). The firm has represented ATS before, but would not reveal if it formed the new group on behalf of ATS. ATS, which has the majority of Florida’ 70+ RLC contracts but not Brooksville’s, appears concerned about a possible precedent-setting legal decision and citizen vote….
Related:Florida Red Light Camera Programs
Source: Florida Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability, February 7, 2014

]]>32317Editorial: To hold line on taxes, cuts must be madehttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2014/08/editorial-to-hold-line-on-taxes-cuts-must-be-made.htm
Thu, 28 Aug 2014 16:23:30 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=32250Source: Daily Gazette, August 28, 2014 You can’t have it both ways. You can’t demand that government control your taxes and at the same time fight every sensible attempt to reduce government spending. Such is the case in Glenville, where the town has the opportunity to save taxpayers nearly $450,000 by hiring a private firm […]

You can’t have it both ways. You can’t demand that government control your taxes and at the same time fight every sensible attempt to reduce government spending. Such is the case in Glenville, where the town has the opportunity to save taxpayers nearly $450,000 by hiring a private firm to clean town buildings and by not having a person in the police station lobby greeting people around the clock. The town has proposed replacing two retiring town employees with a private cleaning company, potentially saving town taxpayers nearly $100,000 a year in salaries and benefits. No one is getting fired or laid off. The positions are becoming vacant, and the town has found a cheaper way to replace them with a professional service. Yet the regional CSEA president and unionized town workers are objecting, even suggesting that the private company cleaners will steal employees’ stuff at night.

]]>32250Connecticut: Redflex Busted For Impersonating The State Courthttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2014/08/connecticut-redflex-busted-for-impersonating-the-state-court.htm
Tue, 19 Aug 2014 20:51:12 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=32124Source: theNewspaper.com, July 31, 2014 Australian photo ticketing company busted for impersonating the Connecticut judicial system. School busThe state of Connecticut’s judicial system in January issued a cease-and-desist order to Redflex Traffic Systems after the Australian photo ticketing vendor was caught giving the impression that its tickets and payment website came from the court. Connecticut […]

Australian photo ticketing company busted for impersonating the Connecticut judicial system.
School busThe state of Connecticut’s judicial system in January issued a cease-and-desist order to Redflex Traffic Systems after the Australian photo ticketing vendor was caught giving the impression that its tickets and payment website came from the court. Connecticut does not allow red light cameras or speed cameras, but Redflex uses school buses as photo ticketing platforms in accordance with a law passed in 2011. One of the vehicle owners who received a $450 school bus ticket from Redflex under this law became suspicious and sent a copy of the notice he received to Connecticut’s chief court administrator, who was appalled at what he saw….

]]>32124Opinion: A focus on outcomes brings program success to government and industryhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2014/08/opinion-a-focus-on-outcomes-brings-program-success-to-government-and-industry.htm
Thu, 07 Aug 2014 16:42:57 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=32024Source: Thomas Romeo – President of MAXIMUS Federal Services, a subsidiary of MAXIMUS Inc., American City & County, Viewpoints, August 6, 2014 …Common contract models such as cost-plus, time and materials and firm fixed price have been used for decades to facilitate the delivery of goods and services to government. Now, a new approach to […]

…Common contract models such as cost-plus, time and materials and firm fixed price have been used for decades to facilitate the delivery of goods and services to government. Now, a new approach to meeting mission goals has begun to gain traction with U.S. procurement officers and agency leaders.

Outcomes-based contracting is an approach to procurement that encourages accountability on the part of the government and the provider by linking payments to a contractor’s ability to achieve a set of defined outcomes. In other words, in an outcomes-based model, contractors are paid only for the results they deliver.

By focusing on outcomes — rather than processes and outputs — contractors are incentivized to perform quality work because their compensation is dependent on delivering measurable, sustainable results. The approach benefits the government further in lower cost for recompetes and contract options, and also improves the partnership between the government and contractor by ensuring the statement of work is aligned to its desired result. Unlike other program models, the government doesn’t assume all of the risk, because the contractor is held accountable for its ability to achieve the stated outcomes. If the contractor does not deliver the full intention of the contract, the government does not pay the full amount of the service fee. As a result, there is little or no “gray area” between the contractor’s delivery, the agency’s mission and the end-customer’s expectations….

…One program using its approach is the District of Columbia Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (D.C. TANF) jobs program, which supports participants and their families in overcoming barriers to employment….

….Outcomes-based contracting has important future application as well. Right now, leaders across the political spectrum are engaged in the bold and necessary legislative thinking that may result in federal immigration reform. …. Federal, state and local governments would likely turn to contractors for help in enacting the law because the private sector can supply both flexible and scalable solutions to meet the wide-ranging needs of such an effort. ….

]]>32024Private security regimes: Conceptualizing the forces that shape the private delivery of securityhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2014/07/private-security-regimes-conceptualizing-the-forces-that-shape-the-private-delivery-of-security.htm
Tue, 29 Jul 2014 17:22:46 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=31963Source: Benoit Dupont, Theoretical Criminology, Vol. 18 no. 3, August 2014 (subscription required) From the abstract: There is as much diversity within the private security industry as there are differences between public and private security providers. Whereas comparisons of the two modes of delivery have kept criminologists and economists fairly busy over the years, internal […]

From the abstract:
There is as much diversity within the private security industry as there are differences between public and private security providers. Whereas comparisons of the two modes of delivery have kept criminologists and economists fairly busy over the years, internal variations have not attracted the same level of interest. In the current environment, binary classifications such as the public/private security dichotomy might be too generic to capture the broad spectrum of unique security arrangements being adopted by various organizations. The aim of this article is therefore to offer an alternative conceptual framework that can account for the broad range of mechanisms responsible for the diversity of private security arrangements observed in late modern societies. The term ‘security regime’ defines the convergence of internal forces and environmental constraints that determine the conditions under which security is produced and exchanged by an organization. The four key dimensions (focus, risks, utility and constraints) that characterize a specific security regime were identified from interviews conducted with more than 50 security managers. The security regime approach should expand our knowledge of the various causes that facilitate, empower or hinder public–private relationships.

]]>31963Have the standards for private security guards become more stringent in the post 9/11 era? An assessment of security guard regulations in the US from 1982 to 2010http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2014/06/have-the-standards-for-private-security-guards-become-more-stringent-in-the-post-911-era-an-assessment-of-security-guard-regulations-in-the-us-from-1982-to-2010.htm
Wed, 04 Jun 2014 16:00:11 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=31420Source: Mahesh K. Nalla and Vaughn J. Crichlow, Security Journal, advance online publication May 19, 2014 (subscription required) From the abstract: There has been a steady increase in security guard employment in the United States in recent decades. Data estimates for 2010 suggest that there are over 10 000 security companies in the United States, employing […]

From the abstract:
There has been a steady increase in security guard employment in the United States in recent decades. Data estimates for 2010 suggest that there are over 10 000 security companies in the United States, employing 1 046 760 guards. While security guards differ from law enforcement officers in many ways, they are similar to the extent that their activities bring them in close contact with citizens, and this raises issues of professionalism and accountability. Yet, relative to police officers, security guard training and licensing standards are not well established and in some contexts there are no regulations for security guards. The threat of terrorism has resulted in greater attention being paid to security guards for their role in safety and security work in the post 9/11 era; however, the extent to which this has affected licensing and training requirements for security guards is unclear. This study examines the nature and extent of security guard licensing and the minimum standards states impose on the industry. It also compares data from 1982 and 1998 with data from 2010, in order to determine whether states have increased the minimum standards relating to security guard regulations over the past 10 years.

]]>31420Can a New Police Force Turn Around Camden, N.J., One of the Nation’s Most Violent Cities?http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2014/05/crime-riddled-nj-city-considers-axing-police-force.htm
http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2014/05/crime-riddled-nj-city-considers-axing-police-force.htm#respondWed, 28 May 2014 15:23:10 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2012/08/crime-riddled-nj-city-considers-axing-police-force.htmSource: Elizabeth Fiedler, NPR, Weekend Edition Sunday, August 19, 2012 Although considered one of the most dangerous places in the country, past budget cuts in Camden, N.J., have forced police layoffs. Now the city is considering even more dramatic steps:...

A new county police force formally took over law enforcement duties in Camden, N.J., Wednesday, as one of America’s most dangerous cities dissolved its municipal police force. The Camden County Police Department’s Metro Division began operations with 255 officers, including 150 from the Camden Police Department. City officers who didn’t apply were officially laid off Wedesday. Scott Thomson, police chief of the Camden PD, was sworn in as the chief of the new agency. The county force will eventually reach more than 400 officers by the fall and bring a greater police presence to the crime-plaqued city, Assistant Chief Michael Lynch told POLICE Magazine….
Related:Crime-Riddled N.J. City Considers Axing Police Force
Source: Elizabeth Fiedler, NPR, Weekend Edition Sunday, August 19, 2012

Although considered one of the most dangerous places in the country, past budget cuts in Camden, N.J., have forced police layoffs. Now the city is considering even more dramatic steps: replacing the city’s police force with one operated by the county…. Jose Cordero, a consultant who’s been hired to develop and implement the new police force, says that a lot of the labor contracts have been negotiated over many years. They reflect years past and “not necessarily the challenges in terms of both economic challenges and public safety challenges that Camden city faces.” Cordero says the plan is to hire more officers with about the same budget. One way the regional force could save money, he says, is by hiring civilians to do work that is done by police….

]]>http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2014/05/crime-riddled-nj-city-considers-axing-police-force.htm/feed026110Black Hawk County janitorial costs to risehttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2014/05/black-hawk-county-janitorial-costs-to-rise.htm
Tue, 27 May 2014 20:54:51 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=31317Source: Tim Jamison, Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier, May 14, 2014 It may cost Black Hawk County more next year to keep the courthouse and other buildings looking good. Members of the county Board of Supervisors opened bids Tuesday on janitorial services for the courthouse, Pinecrest Building, jail and Juvenile Court Services buildings for the three […]

It may cost Black Hawk County more next year to keep the courthouse and other buildings looking good. Members of the county Board of Supervisors opened bids Tuesday on janitorial services for the courthouse, Pinecrest Building, jail and Juvenile Court Services buildings for the three years starting July 1. Despite getting heavy interest — six companies submitted proposals — the apparent low bid was still about $15,000 more than the current annual cost and $5,000 more than was budgeted for the next fiscal year. T&C Cleaning Inc., of Denver, submitted a bid of $230,000 to clean the buildings. The next lowest bid was $247,000 from Marsden Building Maintenance, of Des Moines. Current contractor Diamond Shine, of Vinton, bid nearly $280,000….Geving noted the county was now requiring the interior marble walls to be cleaned annually and was specifying that at least 50 percent of the cleaning chemicals had to be environmentally friendly. The county outsourced its building maintenance in 2003, laying off a number of unionized employees. It was rebid in 2006, with Marsden winning the service, only to see the supervisors terminate the contract after continuous complaints about poor service and office thefts from various departments….

]]>31317Local cleaning service expects layoffs after losing contract with City of Jacksonhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2014/05/local-cleaning-service-expects-layoffs-after-losing-contract-with-city-of-jackson.htm
Tue, 27 May 2014 20:31:14 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=31315Source: Will Forgrave, mlive.com, May 21, 2014 A new contract for janitorial services at city-owned properties will push out a Jackson-based company and likely result in four layoffs of its employees. Beginning July 1, A Williams Cleaning Services will no longer provide cleaning services for the city after nearly four years as the lead cleaning […]

A new contract for janitorial services at city-owned properties will push out a Jackson-based company and likely result in four layoffs of its employees. Beginning July 1, A Williams Cleaning Services will no longer provide cleaning services for the city after nearly four years as the lead cleaning company. Owner Al Williams said he has contracted on and off with the city for 15 years. … Jackson City Council voted 4-3 this month to approve a contract with RNA Janitorial. The Ann Arbor-based company provided a bid of $46,176, nearly $13,000 a year lower than A Williams Cleaning Services’ bid of $59,124….The bidding process calls for the janitorial company to clean City Hall, as well as five other city properties including the city’s water department, the waste water treatment plant, the department of public works, the water treatment plant and the police department….

]]>31315Virginia: Redflex Caught Using Violation Calculatorhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2014/05/virginia-redflex-caught-using-violation-calculator.htm
Thu, 22 May 2014 20:03:53 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=31297Source: TheNewspaper.com, May 21, 2014 Red light camera vendor uses a spreadsheet to calculate profit based on engineering deficiencies such as short yellow time. Redflex Traffic Systems uses a special spreadsheet to calculate precisely how much profit a city can expect from red light cameras on an intersection-by-intersection basis. WTKR-TV reported about the “violation calculator” […]

Red light camera vendor uses a spreadsheet to calculate profit based on engineering deficiencies such as short yellow time.

Redflex Traffic Systems uses a special spreadsheet to calculate precisely how much profit a city can expect from red light cameras on an intersection-by-intersection basis. WTKR-TV reported about the “violation calculator” that Redflex used to provide the city of Chesapeake, Virginia with the dollar figure it could expect after signing a contract with the Australian firm.

The violation calculator is a more refined version of the criteria red light camera companies have always used. In 2001, a team of attorneys in San Diego, California used a court subpoena to obtain a copy of the confidential site evaluation performed by vendor Lockheed Martin (which now operates as Xerox). The decisions on where cameras were installed were based on finding high volume, downhill approaches where the yellow time was less than 4 seconds (view document)….

….Under Virginia law, it is illegal to base the compensation for a red light camera company on the number of tickets issued or the amount of money collected. During the proposal process, Redflex asked Chesapeake officials to explain the legality of the city’s expectation not to ever have to pay for the camera program through a cost neutrality clause….

]]>31151Forest Park cleans up with janitorial contracthttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2014/05/forest-park-cleans-up-with-janitorial-contract.htm
Fri, 02 May 2014 15:49:55 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=31127Source: Jennie Key, communitypress.com, April 24, 2014 The city’s janitorial contract has remained constant since 2007, with no increases in cost or decreases in services. Council extended its janitorial contract with GSF Janitorial Services Monday with no increase this year. Or last year. In fact, the city’s paying the same rate this year that it […]

The city’s janitorial contract has remained constant since 2007, with no increases in cost or decreases in services. Council extended its janitorial contract with GSF Janitorial Services Monday with no increase this year. Or last year. In fact, the city’s paying the same rate this year that it paid when it started doing business with GSF in 2007….Hodges said while some quotes seemed lower, closer analysis showed they also provided less service. For example, bidder Jani-King’s quote included a reduction in service and didn’t include standard items the city was currently receiving such as daily emptying of the mixed paper recycling containers, spot cleaning of the carpet, the twice annual carpet cleaning, machine scrubbing, stripping, waxing and sealing of the tile floors, and spray buffing of the tile floors as needed….

California Department of Industrial RelationsThe two largest providers of red light camera systems in the country have been caught flouting labor laws. The California Department of Industrial Relations has taken action against American Traffic Systems (ATS) of Arizona and Redflex Traffic Systems of Australia for failing to pay contractors prevailing wage rates, despite a contractual obligation to do so. ATS was caught violating the rules in South San Francisco in 2012. Six years earlier, the city signed a contract with ATS to install, operate and maintain the devices in return for keeping $5000 per month from the ticket revenue at each intersection approach. In 2009, ATS convinced the city to expand the number of photo enforced intersections. ATS subcontracted the new installation work to a company called Republic ITS. Republic was to receive up to $263,100 to install conduit and wires, erect a pole for the red light camera, connect the electricity and ensure all the proper permits were obtained. …

]]>30752State Fingerprint System Flawed, More Expensive To Maintain Than To Buildhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2014/03/state-fingerprint-system-flawed-more-expensive-to-maintain-than-to-build.htm
Mon, 10 Mar 2014 17:54:37 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=30593Source: Tristram Korten, Florida Center for Investigative Reporting, March 9, 2014 The Florida Department of Law Enforcement’s troubled five-year-old automatic fingerprint identification system (AFIS) has cost far more to maintain than it did to design and build because of technical problems. It is now so unstable that it is causing delays during investigations and arrests […]

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement’s troubled five-year-old automatic fingerprint identification system (AFIS) has cost far more to maintain than it did to design and build because of technical problems. It is now so unstable that it is causing delays during investigations and arrests across the state.

A former engineer for Motorola, the company that built the system, has come forward and claimed the company delivered a product riddled with problems. His claims are documented in internal Motorola reports that he said were never shared with the FDLE.

Documents reviewed by the Florida Center for Investigative Reporting detail a series of costly maintenance requests and upgrades needed to keep the fingerprint system functioning properly. The documents also include internal Motorola reports recording accuracy issues with the fingerprint system. If true, in addition to delaying investigations, these problems could mean suspects weren’t identified during system searches, and criminal cases using some fingerprint evidence could be called into question.

FDLE contracted Motorola in 2007 to build the $7.4 million system. The contract was sole source, meaning no other companies bid on it. Almost immediately after its completion in June 2009, officials asked the Florida Legislature for money to address maintenance and technical support issues….

As directed by the Legislature, OPPAGA examined red light camera programs implemented by Florida cities and counties
and answered five questions.

1. How do Florida’s local governments implement and operate red light camera programs?
2. How much revenue do Florida’s local government red light camera programs generate?
3. What has been the experience in other states with red light camera programs?
4. How many violations and crashes are occurring in Florida jurisdictions with red light camera programs?
5. Are there options for modifying red light camera programs in Florida? …

…State and local red light camera revenue has increased more than 200% since Fiscal Year 2010-11… Nearly 50% of fines collected by local governments are used to pay red light camera vendors. … However, some jurisdictions (16%) have had difficulty generating sufficient revenue to make payments to vendors and have accrued outstanding balances… To examine the financial arrangement between jurisdictions and red light camera vendors, we reviewed 36 contracts and city ordinances from 20 unique jurisdictions. 14 We found that jurisdictions typically pay vendors between $4,250 and $4,750 per camera, per month. These payments cover costs associated with site selection; camera installation, operation, and maintenance; review of possible violations; violation issuance; payment collection; data collection; and customer service. ….
See also:Florida Red Light Camera Programs: A Presentation to the Senate Transportation Committee
Source: Larry Novey, Florida Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability, February 13, 2014

Florida Legislative Report Pans Red Light Camera Safety / Florida government report found angle and rear end collision increases at intersections with red light cameras.
Source: thenewspaper.com, February 11, 2014
OPPAGA report coverRevenue from red light cameras in Florida has more than tripled in the past year, from $38 to $119 million, but a report by the state’s Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability found no commensurate jump in traffic safety. In a report released Friday, the analysts for the legislative branch surveyed the 79 jurisdictions that use automated ticketing machines to determine the impact the devices have had since they were authorized in 2010. According to the study, some jurisdictions made no profit from the cameras after the state took its cut and red light camera vendors, primarily American Traffic Solutions, walked away with half of the proceeds. The lack of local profit is not an issue, as reducing accidents is the stated goal for the majority of red light camera programs in the state…..

Two lawmakers who filed bills to repeal Florida’s red-light camera law say a recent state analysis backs up their argument that there is a better way to improve safety at traffic intersections…. The repeal proposals, Senate Bill 144 and House Bill 4009, have yet to receive any committee hearings. Brandes said he was waiting for the state report before proceeding. Artiles is also inserting changes to the red-light camera program — including a moratorium and reduced fines — in a second, much larger transportation bill. House Bill 7005 would slash the fine from $158 to $83 by removing the $75 that usually goes to local government agencies. Municipalities would be able to impose a surcharge to fund existing cameras, but it would have to be discussed at a public hearing and approved by majority vote….

Discussion about red-light cameras comes as a former executive for a prominent red-light camera vendor is accusing the company of offering gifts and bribes to officials in Florida and 13 other states to gain contracts. That company — RedFlex Traffic Systems of Phoenix — has contracts in Clearwater, Jacksonville and Kissimmee. City administrators in Clearwater have requested corporate gift records from the company, but City Manager Bill Horne told the Tampa Bay Times it has acted appropriately….

]]>30429Arizona County Dumps Speed Cameras As Ineffective / Photo radar fails to reduce accidents in Pima County, Arizona so board of supervisors cancel programhttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2014/01/arizona-county-dumps-speed-cameras-as-ineffective-photo-radar-fails-to-reduce-accidents-in-pima-county-arizona-so-board-of-supervisors-cancel-program.htm
Mon, 27 Jan 2014 21:17:01 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=30176Source: theNewspaper.com, January 21, 2014 Speed cameras did nothing to improve safety on the roads of Pima County, Arizona so county supervisors decided earlier this month to cut ties with American Traffic Solutions (ATS), the for profit company in charge of the program. The automated ticketing contract expired on January 6. … …”Studies show that […]

Speed cameras did nothing to improve safety on the roads of Pima County, Arizona so county supervisors decided earlier this month to cut ties with American Traffic Solutions (ATS), the for profit company in charge of the program. The automated ticketing contract expired on January 6. …

…”Studies show that drivers become familiar with the fixed sites and decelerate as they near the camera, only to accelerate once clear of the site,” County Administrator C.H. Huckelberry wrote in a memo to the board of supervisors. “The crash rate throughout the entire Pima County road system declined 19 percent since 2008. Isolating just the eleven camera sites, however, indicates the three-year crash rate across the camera locations decreased only 13 percent, which is lower than expected.”

At some sites, accidents increased, and at others they decreased, suggesting the photo ticketing had no effect on safety. The county analysis found accident severity also stayed the same. Collision rates may not be the only factor motivating supervisors. From the beginning, the county has had problems with ATS and the tiered per-ticket compensation arrangement that was part of the contract….

]]>30176Maryland: Audit Finds Thousands Of Inaccurate Speed Camera Citationshttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2014/01/maryland-audit-finds-thousands-of-inaccurate-speed-camera-citations.htm
Mon, 27 Jan 2014 20:16:15 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=30168Source: theNewspaper.com, January 24, 2014 Audit finds over 36 percent of speed camera tickets issued in Baltimore, Maryland to be questionable or obviously bogus. Motorists in Maryland have been receiving tens of thousands of illegal and inaccurate photo radar citations. According to an audit report performed on behalf of the city of Baltimore, upwards on […]

Audit finds over 36 percent of speed camera tickets issued in Baltimore, Maryland to be questionable or obviously bogus.

Motorists in Maryland have been receiving tens of thousands of illegal and inaccurate photo radar citations. According to an audit report performed on behalf of the city of Baltimore, upwards on ten percent of speed camera tickets issued were bogus. That represents a doubling of an earlier admission by the speed camera operator Xerox that the error rate was 5.2 percent. Other jurisdictions have run into similar problems.

Baltimore eventually dumped Xerox over the problems, but it hired URS Corporation to perform an independent review. The resulting report, completed last April, was withheld from the public and was obtained by the Baltimore Sun newspaper. …

…Legal issues have haunted other jurisdictions. On Wednesday, Prince George’s County admitted that it had unlawfully allowed its private contractor to issue 2059 tickets worth $82,360 near St. Ignatius Loyola School on Brinkley Road in Fort Washington. The local television station WUSA noticed that the county failed to meet the legal requirement to advertise the camera location prior to activating the device. As a result, the county agreed to a full refund of all improperly issued citations. …

]]>30168Oakland looks into more surveillance, drones to fight local crimehttp://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/2014/01/oakland-looks-into-more-surveillance-drones-to-fight-local-crime.htm
Tue, 14 Jan 2014 17:55:45 +0000http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/privatizationupdate/?p=30021Source: Aarti Shahani, Al Jazeera America, December 30, 2013 Despite concerns about government snooping and tech incompetence, the progressive city is considering spy centers. … …Council members and citizens butted heads over the Domain Awareness Center— a surveillance hub that elected officials said would use thousands of live feeds from cameras, gunshot detectors and license-plate […]

Despite concerns about government snooping and tech incompetence, the progressive city is considering spy centers. … …Council members and citizens butted heads over the Domain Awareness Center— a surveillance hub that elected officials said would use thousands of live feeds from cameras, gunshot detectors and license-plate readers to protect the public. Critics worried it would violate rights….At the City Council hearing, protesters calling themselves “Seymour Butts” and “Edward Snowden” hinted at these reasons when they asked questions such as “Who pays if the project goes over budget?” and “What happens if the center is hacked?” The council members did not have answers. But they did have a grant deadline. If Oakland didn’t approve the project, it risked losing $2 million in federal money. Six of the seven members voted to move forward. … New York and other cities are working with companies such as IBM and Microsoft to use big data in policing. … It’s hard to turn down federal grants, but experts said the funding is not enough to cover the costs. Oakland has set an annual operating budget of $1.25 million for its surveillance center…. A 2012 investigation by the Oakland auditor indicated the city has a poor track record. The audit found that police spent at least $1.87 million on “never used or underused technology” and their purchases “have drawn down Oakland’s very limited financial resources without significant benefit to the citizens of Oakland.” … The city has not decided if the head of the surveillance center will be a public official or a private contractor. The contractor the city hired for the first phase of the project, Science Applications International Corp., paid New York City $500 milion in a settlement over contract fraud and overcharged Oakland for services. …